Boston Bruins Player of the Week: Dennis Seidenberg

By Emma Harger

Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports

Deciding on a Boston Bruins player of the week for this past week was somewhat difficult for two reasons. The first was that the Bruins’ past week was just not great by any means. Consider: they scored just five goals in three games and three of those came from defensemen. Though Daniel Paille makes a good case for player of the week, and has Seventh Player Award potential written all over him, Dennis Seidenberg‘s two goals were very important to the outcome of the games–so that’s why he is my choice for Bruins player of the week.

His importance actually begins during the Bruins’ 3-1 loss to the Winnipeg Jets. In that game, he led all Bruins in shots attempted and time on ice, even eclipsing Zdeno Chara (although by a matter of seconds).

Though he spent less time on the ice and took fewer shots against the Ottawa Senators, one of the two shots attempted mattered so very much to the team’s chance of winning. At 18:56 of the third period, his goal from right around the blue line made Robin Lehner quite literally hoppin’ mad and ended up being all the Bruins needed for a 2-1 win. This isn’t the first time he’s found the back of the net from far, far away against Ottawa, either:

http://youtu.be/7m0oNGewuz4

Note how that goal also broke a tie and was the last one needed for a Boston win. It’s safe to say that he earned the MVP shirt after that.

https://twitter.com/Ferknuckle/status/314925507055611904

Two days after that victory-securing goal, Seidenberg ensured that James Reimer would not have a shutout for the Toronto Maple Leafs after it looked like they were going for just that and were up by a cushy three-goal lead. He sparked an attempted third-period Boston comeback that fell short by just one goal.

Through a week that was not the best for the Bruins, Seidenberg kept working hard for his team and altered the outcomes of two games. That’s what makes him player of the week material.

Emma Harger is a Boston Bruins and NHL writer for RantSports.com. Follow her on Twitter, like her on Facebook and add her to your network on Google.